Dahl
Dahl is a Human character and the Minister for The Count. He plays a similar role to that of the Lord Mayor of Koka except he's under direct supervision of the Count himself, who has ruled since his human days. =Appearance= Dahl is a short old man shown to be wearing minister's robes, with clothe hanging over his shoulders and buttoned in the ront. He is shown to have no facial hair and wears a white minister's cap. He always wears a grim expression on his aged face...which in itself looks like it may be in the late 60's. =Personality= A cowardly man who only wishes to keep himself alive, he does whatever the Count asks of him (perform many executions and be the public speaker for such events) and fears him all the same. Though he doesn't show much remorse for his actions, which make him coldhearted and selfish in the end, moreso as he insults guards who are dying at the hands of Guts. Somewhere deep inside it does appear he cares for the family he has served under, most likely from his days when the Count was still human. He expresses this after the Count leaves Theresia's room feeling like a monster...but his concern is quickly turned into fear as the Count reveals his monstrous true form. =Plot= Dohl does not appear in the anime, as it only covers the Snake Baron events and then proceeds into the Golden Era arc. The Black Swordsman arc Dahl is first seen reading out the judgement for a young woman accused of being a heretic in the eyes of the Count. He reads off the sentence as death by execution despite her pleas and when her head is removed, not one stutter is shown from this little man. Though he does question whether or not the increasing number of executions will lead to his holiness paying them a little visit. The Count pays this no mind, claiming that what he does is for the good of his people and he says it with such a sinister smile that Dahl finds himself sweating as he agrees. Soon after Guts arrives and causes a little bit of an upstir when he grabs the head of the recently executed lady and lobs it in the direction of the Count. The Count catches it effortlessly but Dahl is shocked at the sudden change of events and watches on with the Count as Guts makes hie leave. After the Count crushes the head of the girl, Dahl looks on in awe but stomachs in the sickness that someone as squirmy as he is should feel. Dahl is next seen with the Count after Captain Zondark fails to stop the Black Swordsman and they both go to visit the injured and now mentally insane Captain of the Guard. As Zondark expresses his hatred and desire to muder the Black Swordsman, The Count takes this opportunity to ask everyone to leave so that he can talk to him in private...from Dohl's expression, he understood what was about to happen. Zondark exits the chambers a new man...litterly, as he is now in pursuit of Guts. Dahl is once again seen with the Count during the execution for Vargas, playing a similar role to what he had in his first appearance (but the Count gives the order this time). He stands rather quietly in this section and just watches as the events play out before him. Later on he accompanies the Count to his daughter Theresia's room with the new pet they collected, the elf Puck after a failed rescue attempt on Vargas's life. Following the drama in the bedroom, Dohl says the Count's name in a concerned tone before he is told to Hush and this ultimately makes him silent right away. During Guts's raid on the castle, Dahl encounters the Black Swordsman after he reaches a high enough point in the castle. He tells Guts that his best choice in this matter is to just surrender in order to avoid senseless bloodshed, but Guts blows him off and prompts an attack...the ends in many guards slain. Running out of options, Dahl summons forth the knight Greico in an attempt at defeating Guts. A rather large man like Zondark, he charges forth with his weapon to try and defeat the swordsman but it fails in misery as Guts retaliates and cuts the man in half, then proceeds by slaying everyone except the old priest himself. Dahl is kicked through the door of the Count's throneroom, directly in the face which causes his nose to bust open and bleed. In a frantic rush, he runs and hides behind a column while Guts faces down the Count...and their battle soon follows, destroying much of the throneroom in the fight. Dahl, fearing for his life, makes a run for the door but Guts is standing right there to greet him. The next thing you know is that Dahl is being used as a decoy to lure the Count in to destroy a pillar and ultimately crushing the old priest as well. It's uncertain if Dahl was dead before or AFTER Guts caught him. Category:Humans Category:Characters Category:Article stubs